Banksy’s ‘Girl with Balloon’ was meant to be shredded completely

Banksy’s latest performance piece — which saw him remotely shred his $1.1 million Girl with Balloon canvas seconds after it sold at auction — captivated the world. What was he trying to say? What did it all mean? Was this a comment on capitalism? On the fickle nature of the art world? The essential meaninglessness of life as we know it? Hard to say, although we do know that the half-shredded canvas is now worth considerably more as a result of the stunt. However, it seems that the trick went wrong –- the canvas was supposed to be destroyed entirely.